Heat-indicating device.



w. B. HUGHES.

HEAT INDIGATING DEVICE. APPLICATION FILED MAB. 9, 1910.

1,034,798. Patented Aug. 6, 1912.

WITNESSES:

1 2% 3, 35% ATTORNEY? W. B. HUGHES. HEAT INDIGATING DEVICE. APPLICATION IILBD MAR. 9, 1910.

1,034,798, Patented Aug. 6, 1912.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

INVENTOR WlTNESSES:

M111 :5. 1 q asmfikl i f ATTORNEYS UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

"WILLIAM B. HUGHES, OF NEWARK, NE\V JERSEY HEAT-INDICATING DEVICE.

T 0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WILLIAM B. Huonns,

a citizen of the United States, residing at Newark, in the county of Essexand State of New Jersey, have invented certain new anduseful Improvements in Heat-Indicating Devices; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, suchas will enable others skilled inthe art to which it appertains tomake and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to characters of reference marked :heat, but onlywhen the increase of thereon, which formra part'of this specification.

' to sound an alarm when the said device or apparatus is subjected to abnormal heat, but .which -maintains the said.'-elect-ric .cir cuit interrupted or broken under a wide variation of normal temperature.

. The present invention, therefore, has for its principal object to provide a noveland simply constructed .device or implement, which. normally maintains an electric circuit interrupted or broken,-wbu't, whichin caseof fire, or the,;generat-1on' of excessive .or sudden heat, is caused to act automatically to close said electric circuitwhereby an alarm may be sounded to',give warning.- The said device or apparatus may be'used also in connection ,with any well known type of alarm and indicator so that in large buildings the exact location of the fire may be ascertained.

Another object of the present invention is to provide in connection with a device .or apparatus of the character above .set forth, a means for adjustin the contact members thereof to regulate t e sensitiveness of. the .said device or, apparatus.

A-still further object of the present invention is to provide in connection with the said novehdevice or apparatus a means for compensating for the normal fluctuation of temperature so that-.t-he device, will not operate under normal. and gradual risesofheat is excessive or sudden. I

Other objects of this invention not at this time more particularly enumerated will be Specification of Letters Patent.

PatentediAug. 6, 1 912.

1910. Serial No. 54s,13a.-

clearly understood from the following detailed description of my present invention.

With the various objects of my present invention in view, the invention consists, primarily, in the novel device or apparatus of the general character hereinafter more fully specified; and, the invention consists,

furthermore, in the novel arrangements and combinations of the various devices and parts, as well as in the details of the construction of the same, all of which will be more fully described in the following specification and then finally embodied in the clauses of. the claim which are. appended to and which form an essential part of this specification.

The invention is clearly illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1, is a face view of the novel device or apparatus embodying the principle of my present invention; and Fig. 2'is an opposite -face view thereof Fig. 3 is a vertical longitudinal section of the said novel device or apparatus, the said section being. taken on line 3,3 in said Fig. 1, and the same being drawn on an enlarged scale. Fig. 4 is a detail transverse section taken on line 44' in said Fig. 3, this view being drawn upon an enlarged scale,

- Similar characters of reference are employed in all of the hereinabove described views to indicate corresponding parts.

Referringhnow to the several figures of the drawings, the reference-character .1 in-' tkiicates a complete novel device or apparatus The referencescharacter 4 indicates a cover or plate, the. same. being provided with an annular ext-ending flange or ring 5. The said flange or ring is providedu on its outer .face with a groove 6 correspont ing in posi tion with the said annular rib 3 of the body member 2, so that the said rib 3will dove tail into the said groove 6. In the drawings, the said cover or plate t-is shown as though made of metal, but under certain conditions it may be advisable to make thesame of some. insulating material, such as hard rubher or fillfl'. Therefore, I do not limit the same as being made of metal. Arranged between the said body-member 2 and the saidthe like, but of a heavier age or thickness than the afore-mentioned iaphragm, 7, the various parts above described are combined and drawn together by thescr ews 11. Secured upon the outer face of said ring-mem- -ber 9 is a cross-strut or spider 12, the same being provided with a centrally disposed hole or perforation 13. ngmn ed-jn said hole or perforation 13 isa shank 14 ofa button 15, the inner face qffsaid buttonbeaii-iii against the said diaplii agm lor The sai cross-strut or spider and its buttoi'n -15 prevents the dia hragn ifrom expa-nding'or moving outward y whenacted u n by;heat.-.

Secured-in a central location an registerin x 4 alarm-bell 40, or other in fa'larm bell is connected by means of the conwith its said iiole or perforation 8upon sai cover of plate 4 is a contact-support 16, the

same being provided: with an outwardly cit? tending boss 17.; Th e s"aid contact-support 16 is insulatedf froin cover 'ortplate 4 by means of anins'ulator'. iece 18, an tact-support issecure in its fixed position by means of screws 19; the said screws also;

being insullited from said contact-support by means of the flanged insulator-sleeves 20.. Arranged in said contact-support is'a screwthreaded contact 21, provi ed at its inner end with a contact point 22, preferably made of platinum, and at its outer end with a square head 23 for turning the same to adjust the position of said contact point 22.

The inner end of said contact point pene"-' trates or passes thro'ughthe perforation or hole 8 of said cover or plate 4, Arranged upon the outer end of said contact pin 21 is a lock-nut 2 1 for locking the samein its ad- Secured upon said diaphragm 7 in such a position as to be opposite the contact point 22 is another contact point 25, preferably made of platinum, the same being secured by riveting to the diaphragm 7. The exposed head of the rivet thus formed is covered with soit solder 26 to make the joint perfectly air-fight. The refercnce-character 27 indicates an air space inclosed by said body-member 22 and the respective diaphragms 7 and 10. The reference character 48 indicates a small hole or perforation in the cover or plate 4-leading into an air-space 49 between said diaphragm 7 and said cover or plate 4. This vent thus formed'by the hole or perforation 48 provides a means for compensating for any consaid 0011 traction or expansion of the air in said space 49. Arranged so as to screw into said body-member 2 is a screwthreaded nipple' portion .28 provided with a lon itudinally extending opening or duct 29. ecured in the inner end of said opening or duct is a tubular member 30, the same being provided with a longitudinal opening or duct 31 of a very slight diameter. Said nippleortion 28 1s further provided between its on s with same when it is desired to screw said nippleupon the outer end of said nipple-portion 28 is an open cap-like member 33, which is provided at its outer end with an enlarged chambered port-ion 34. Arranged within this chambered portion is a fabric-screen 35,

and a washer 36 for holding it in place. The

inner periphery 37 of the walls of said chambered ortion 34 is milled or crushed down aroun said washer 36 so as to retain the same in its holding position. Secured in elpctrical contact with one of said screws 11 and thus in electrical contact with said diaphragm 7 is the terminal-piece 38, of a wiremnductor 39, the same leadin to an electric dicator. Said Lductor or circuit 41 with one pole of a battery 42, or any other suitable source of electricity. The other pole of said battery 42 is connected to a wire-conductor 43: the terminal piece 44 of which is secured in electrical contact with said contactsupport 16 by means of one of the screws 19, but insulated from said screw by one of the flanged in; sulat'o' -sleeves 20. Secured in said body- 'mem r 2 is a shank 45 of theperforated head 46 in which is arranged a ring 47, by means of which the said device or apparatus may suspended in any desirable location in a room or other'desired place.

H aving thus described the general construct-ion of the novel' device or apparatus providing the automatic fire-alarm, I will now describe the method of its operation When the device is subjec'ted to excessive or raises the temperature of the same, and

retained in the space 27. The heat thus communicated to the air in said space 27 causes the same to expand, and this expansion of the air exerts a ressure upon the thin diaphra m 7, pressing the same outwardly until its contact point 25 engages the contact point 22, thus closing an' interrupted electric circuit, as will be clearly apparent from an inspection of the drawings; -When the circuit is thus closed, the electric current passes through the battery 42 by way of the wire-conductor 3 and terminal piece 44 into the contact-support 16 and contactportion into said body-member 2. Secureda nut-"like shoulder 32 for manipulating the.

causes it to communicate the heat to the air through one of the screws 11 to the terminal piece 38 and the wire 39 to the alarm bell 40, and thence by the wire-conductor 41 back into the battery 42, thus completing the circult.

It will be readily understood, that the device may be made more or less sensitive by moving the contact oint 22 closer or farther away from the diaphragm 7 and its contact point 25, so that the same can be regulated to cause the device to operate more or less quickly.

In order that it may be assuredthat the automatic circuit-closing means will not opera'te under normal fluctuations of temperture, which are enerally slow or gradual in change, the sa ety-escape mechanism provided by the nipple-portion 28' and its connected parts operates to allow the air in the space 27 which is expanded by the gradual rising of temperature to very adually escape, so that the expansion of t e air in said space 27 is compensated for in proportion to the slow rise of temperature, and thus preventing any pressure by means of expanded air bein exerted' upon the diaphragm 7, where y the same is caused to carry the contact point 25 in engagement with the contact point 22.

I claim:

1. A device for automatically closing an electric circuit when subjected to excessive or sudden heat comprising a body-member, a ring-member arranged upon one face of said body-member, a cover or plate arranged upon the opposite face of said body-member, diaphragms arranged respectively between said body-member and saidring-member and said body-member and said cover or plate, said body-member and said diaphragms providing an inclosed air-chamber between said diaphragms, a contact-point connected with.

one of said diaphragms, means for adjustably supporting another contact-point in-po sition to be engaged by said contact-point on said diaphragm, and means for insulating said contact-points from each other when in their disengaged or normally separated positions, substantially as and for the purposes set forth.

2. In a device for automatically closing an electric circuit when subject -to exce's-' sire or sudden heat, the combina .ion with a bodymember, of I diaphragms arranged therewith to form'an inclosed air-chamber, an electrical circuit make and break means operated by the expansion oi: the air in said air-chamber, and means for permittin the escape of the expanded air in said air-c amber when the device is subjected to normal fluctuations of temperature, comprising a nipple-portion entering said air-chamber, a tubular-member connected with the inn'er end of said nipple-portion, said tubular member being provided with a longitudinal opening of very slight diameter, an o n cap-member connected with the outeren of said nipple-portion, a fabric-screen arranged in said open capmember, and means for re taining said fabric-screen .in position, sub-j stantially as and for the purposes set forth;

3. In a device of the character described, I the combination with a body-member, of diaair-chamber when the device is subjected tonormal fluctuations of temperature, comprising a rip le-portion entering said air-,

chamber, a tu ularmember connected with the inner end of said nipple-portion, said tubular member bein provided with a longitudinal opening 0 very slight diameter, an open cap-member connected with the outer end of said nipple portion, a fabric screen arranged in said open cap-member,

and means for retaining said fabric-screen in position, substantially as and for the purposes set forth.

In testimony, that I claim the invention set forth above I have hereunto set my hand this 7th day of March, 1910.

WILLIAM B. HUGHES. \Vitnesses FREDlFl. C. FRAENTZEL, Fnrorz. H. W. Fnann'rznu. 

